


Coastal Citrus and Sea Mist

by ggfj84



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Sentinels & Guides, Artist Keith (Voltron), Based off of the Sentinel TV show from the 90's, M/M, Sentinel/Guide, cop shiro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-16 05:21:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29570949
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ggfj84/pseuds/ggfj84
Summary: Keith had become such an important part of Shiro’s life, his Guide, and as Keith’s Sentinel, Shiro would find him.
Relationships: Keith/Shiro (Voltron)
Comments: 16
Kudos: 44





	Coastal Citrus and Sea Mist

**Author's Note:**

  * For [runonthewind](https://archiveofourown.org/users/runonthewind/gifts).



> Special thanks to runonthewind for this Sentinel/Guide AU prompt. I'm not well-versed in this AU, but I remember the old show from the 90's. I based this story off of the that, but you don't need to know anything about the show to enjoy this story. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

Coastal citrus and sea mist, with the overwhelming scent of fresh paint and wet dog. Keith could scrub his hands and clothes all he wanted, but he could never leave the scent of his studio behind.

Shiro was never so grateful.

He locked onto it the moment he saw paint splattered upon the loft’s hardwood floors, Kosmo whimpering the corner, and a shattered casserole dish on the kitchen counter.

“Someone stabbed Kosmo and took Keith,” Shiro clipped as he pressed a dishtowel down upon the panting wolf’s stomach. He glanced back at the smashed but steaming casserole. “Couldn’t have been more than a few minutes ago.”

“Are you at the loft?” Allura asked via speakerphone. “I’ll be there in ten.”

“I’m going after Keith.”

 _“No._ Wait for – ”

Shiro hit off his cellphone, then petted Kosmo’s ruffled flank. “Don’t worry, boy. I’ll bring him back.”

And then he was gone – through the open window, down the fire escape, and onto the streets of Marmora. As he stood before the opening of their loft, Shiro took a calming and deep breath. He let it go slowly and then repeated the motion.

The scent of coastal citrus and seat mist was stronger to the east.

Shiro retreated to the alley where he parked his motorcycle, pulled on his helmet, and hit the throttle. As Keith’s scent progressively grew stronger, it dragged Shiro back to the first day he met his Guide.

Shiro had just been released from the hospital after the doctors couldn’t find anything wrong with him – despite Shiro experiencing heightened senses – and headed to the nearby Altea University. A nurse at the hospital had sent him in search of an anthropologist who had written a dissertation on Sentinels and Guides, and Shiro ran – literally – into Keith.

A head shorter than him, vibrant indigo eyes, long bangs, ripped jeans and a leather jacket – and _young_ \- in his early to mid-twenties.

Shiro blinked and for the first time since his senses went haywire, breathed. It was as if his senses settled, and he was _normal_ again – or as normal as anyone ever was.

Keith and he went to a nearby sitting area, and as Shiro explained his struggles to reign in his senses, Keith wrote in his notebook.

After about thirty minutes, Shiro sighed, “And that’s why I sought you out, Dr. Sandburg.”

Keith flustered. “Oh, hm. I’m not Dr. Sandburg. I’m Keith. Keith Kogane.”

Shiro gripped the chair’s arms. “But you were outside Dr. Sandburg’s office.”

“Yeah. Asshole gave me a B-minus on my last paper. I wanted to ask him what he was looking for if not a 10-page paper about the Galran culture and its impact upon Earth’s spaceport cities.”

“But-But you’ve been taking notes this entire time!”

“Oh, no.” Keith flipped his notebook around to show a very generous sketch of Shiro’s torso and head. “I’ve been sketching. I’m Visual Arts major.”

Shiro’s mouth dropped open and then closed again. He could only muster, “…that’s…not really what I look like.”

“No?” Keith flipped the notebook back to himself. “Hm. I think it is.”

Dr. Sandburg didn’t return to his office that day, though Keith kept Shiro company through the rest of his wait. As they broke at the end of the day, Shiro “zoned-out.” He struggled to think, to function, but when Keith stepped off the curb in the way of a speeding car, Shiro snapped out of his funk and lunged at Keith, dragging him away from the car and to safety.

The only other thing Shiro could think to do was head to his partner, Allura, with Keith in tow.

“Hm. Enhanced senses, a fateful meeting, a life-or-death situation – all the makings of a Sentinel-Guide relationship.”

“Relationship?” Keith parroted.

Allura hummed her agreement and poured them some tea. “I never told you this, Shiro. My father and Zarkon were afraid if the truth came out, scientists would want to study them more closely. But my father was a Guide, and Zarkon was his Sentinel.”

Even if Shiro hadn’t known Allura since they were children, he still would have known about Alfor and Zarkon. They were decorated detectives of the Marmora Police Department and worked for the Major Crimes Department before Allura and Shiro. The duo solved more cases than any other partners in the department history – combined. That was – until they were killed in an ambush by a gang whose leader they’d arrested.

Allura explained what Dr. Sandburg hadn’t – for every Sentinel, there was a Guide. And a Sentinel worked alongside a Guide to protect their territory.

In their case, the territory was Marmora.

Though it took a few months of coincidences, Shiro eventually came to believe what Allura said – Keith and his meeting was fated.

His and Keith’s lives became intertwined. They met in the morning at the bagel store, at the library, at a park where Shiro was taking down a drug dealer and Keith was simply walking his wolf.

Chance meetings, all of them, or so it seemed.

Then Keith’s warehouse apartment was blown up, thanks to a drug lab next door, so it only made sense for Shiro to invite him (and Kosmo) to live in the loft. Afterwards, Keith somehow became engrained in all parts of Shiro’s life – from sharing meals to helping Allura and him solve cases.

Shiro smiled every time he caught the strong scent of coastal citrus and sea mist when Keith entered the precinct.

Without even swiveling in his chair, Shiro would always tease his Guide, “Good to smell you, Keith.”

Keith heaved himself up onto Shiro’s desk with a sigh. “I’m never going to sneak up on you, am I?”

“Not unless you become a super-secret ninja or something.” Shiro smiled and turned to give Keith his full attention. “So what brings you to the Marmora Major Crimes bullpen, huh?”

Keith had become such an important part of Shiro’s life, his Guide, and as Keith’s Sentinel, Shiro would find him.

Keith’s scent grew until it practically choked Shiro, and then he caught the sound of Keith’s scream. Shiro’s bike skidded to a halt, and he swiveled it around until it faced the door of a rundown warehouse. He gunned the throttle and tore through the door – only to find Keith already doing a number on the people who took him.

Shiro immediately recognized the purple, blue, and orange colors as the Sincline Gang. Allura and he had just arrested their leader – Zarkon’s wayward son – and apparently, his lieutenants took offense.

Of course, they hadn’t expected Shiro’s Guide to be an expert in both the linear and circular techniques of Taekwondo.

As Keith took down one of the smaller gang members, Shiro launched himself off his bike, threw his helmet at the largest one, and then used his momentum to drag her to the ground. One punch knocked her unconscious, and he moved onto the next one.

As he blocked a kick and delivered his own, he smelled Keith’s coastal citrus and sea mist, with hints of fresh paint and wet dog, but he also smelled the oil on the ground from the van they used to bring Keith here. He heard the thundering sound of Keith’s beating heart and the fluttering of wings – a bird was in the crossbeams. He saw the droplets of blood Keith drew from the last lieutenant’s cheek as he delivered a crushing blow. Then white noise – only white noise – as Keith’s bangs framed those piercing eyes.

Keith’s plush lips pursed when he said Shiro’s name, but it sounded so far away – like Shiro was underwater. Shiro’s fingertips scraped across his jeans as he blinked, losing his thoughts with each passing moment.

A smooth hand cupped his cheek. Keith’s face peeked up under his chin, and then those soft, pink lips were upon his own.

They were warm and tasted a bit like coffee, and then reality came rushing back to Shiro.

Shiro’s hands found Keith’s hips, and he lowered his head to allow Keith to drop off his toes. He deepened the kiss and let the relief wash over him as he held Keith warm and safe in his arms.

When they broke, Shiro dropped his forehead to Keith’s, but Keith spoke first.

“Welcome back.”

“Thanks. You okay?”

“Yeah, but these assholes ruined our dinner. It was a cauliflower mac ‘n’ cheese casserole.”

Shiro grimaced. “Babe, that’s not mac ‘n’ cheese.”

Keith rolled his eyes but didn’t pull away. “Excuse me for trying to get some vegetables into your diet.”

“Maybe tomorrow,” Shiro offered as he reached into his pocket for his phone. “Now, let me call this in and then we have to get Kosmo to the vet.”

Keith visibly relaxed and sagged against Shiro. “Fine, but…don’t go too far, okay?”

Shiro kept his arm about Keith’s shoulders and kissed the top of his head. “Don’t worry, babe. I’m not going anywhere.”

_The End_

**Author's Note:**

> I may be launching a followers' giveaway in the coming weeks. If interested, follow me on [Tumblr](https://ggfj84.tumblr.com/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ggfj84). Thanks!


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